Life Expectancy of Countries Across the Globe

Life Expectancy of Countries Across the Globe

Let's examine the life expectancy of countries across the globe. The goal is to determine if life country expectancies at birth are related to the population growth. In determining the answer, a variety of variables will be researched and examined to determine the contributing factors. The life expectancy and population data will be measured by using statistics from the CIA Demographics data set which contains quantifiable statistics data for countries across the globe. Data from 30 or more countries, equally divided into categories of lower population, higher population, lower life expectancies, and higher life expectancies, will be examined and evaluated. Furthermore, literature reviews will be used aid in giving an in depth explanation of the resulting research.

The Problem
The problem is, although it is known, in countries like China, disease is a contributing factor of low life expectancies, it is also known that the high risk of disease in China is due to over population which is the cause of other concerning factors that have an impact on life expectancies. Could this be the fate for other countries in the world?

The world’s population has been on a steady increase since 1960. In 1960, the world population was 3.0403 billion and as of 2010 the population 6.8946 billion people (World Bank, 2012). Therefore, the world population has more than doubled in the last 52 years despite the fact that it is currently decreasing (World Bank, 2012). Therefore it is important to know if large populations and population growth could play a the most significant role and be of concern for other countries that are experiencing, or could experience in the near future, crowded populations, although life expectancies, country, country size, population, GDP, age, and unemployment within a country can be contributing factors of life expectancy results. Population growth could have long-term effects on life expectancies across the globe, not just in China but on a global scale. Are large population numbers a direct contributor to life expectancy rates?

The Importance of Life Expectancy Research
There are several reasons that research into the life expectancy of any given country could be valuable and important. One of these reasons is for insurance rates. Insurance companies generally compute their policy premiums in regard to the life expectancy of the person that is asking to be insured. In areas with low levels of life expectancy these premiums would be higher than areas that have higher life expectancy. As such, if the area in question can be made to have a higher life expectancy than other areas, insurance (such as medical) and other costs, can most likely be made lower which can contribute to helping the economy of that country (Adams, 2009).

Another reason for investigating life expectancies is because of medical, technological and other factors that could help improve or degrade these numbers. Knowing what the average life expectancy from birth is in any given country can help determine where aid or improvements in that country need to occur, such as more medical attention, jobs, or more schools, that could help improve both the quality of life and the average life expectancy from birth (Audrey Baer, 2002).

One last benefit of researching the life expectancy of a given country is that it can allow that country to form lower-cost policies that can have large impacts of the average life expectancy and other factors that can lead to a better quality of life, such as how to plan for farming and employment. This is especially important in developing third world countries as it can help government and civilian services with ideas regarding the best areas in which to spend funds for improvements (Audrey Baer, 2002).

Hypotheses
The life expectancies of countries across the globe can be affected by many factors. The two most pertinent factors are population and disease but several economic factors as well as age will also be explored. The decrease in life expectancies can be attributed to the increased risk of disease due to overpopulation but can also be caused by the existence or increase in poverty and elderly people over the age of 65.

There are many possible outcomes to performing research on life expectancies:
• There is no direct relationship between population and life expectancies, at birth, in any other country across the globe, except for China, and there are no other variables that can prove to fit this link.
• Population numbers alone are directly responsible for life expectancies across the globe.
• All of the economic factors are responsible for the decrease in life expectancies.
• The size of the country is directly responsible for the decrease in life expectancies.
• A combination of both population and economic factors are responsible for life expectancies.

There are several categorical variables to be tested for this outcome: life expectancies, country, country size, population, GDP, age, and unemployment. A population to variable ratio will be found for each of the 30 countries we will examine by means of a ratio scale. Each variable will be tested in the same way. An interval scale will be used to compare each country with each variable. Thirty countries will be weighed one against the next in areas of population, country size, GDP, age, and unemployment. Literature reviews and a sampling design will be used to get an in depth view of the results and finalize the conclusion.

There are five more steps to take in order to complete this research paper: Review of literature, sampling design, data collection, data analysis using descriptive statistics, and conclusion/results. There are many different aspects to examine, and several variables that to be considered. Literature will have to be reviewed for an in-depth look at the facts of our research results and validation. All of the variables will be tested and evaluated in order to reach a logical conclusion. We will reach a conclusion by weeding out the variables that prove to be invalid, while concentrating on the ones that prove to be valid, reviewing credible literature, and using sampling designs. By week five, we will have conducted the research necessary in formulating a logical conclusion for the population fluctuations by eliminating the variables that we determine to be invalid causes for this phenomenon. The reasons why there are fluctuations in life expectancies at birth occur across the globe will get results.